ANBU Shinigami ReMix
by Tsukasa of the Azure Sea
Summary: Hanataro Yamada. Healer. 7th seat. Retired Shinobi. What happens to Shinobi after death? Most of them become Shinigami as it's best-kept secret. Aizen will never know what hit him. Neither will Soul Society
1. Prolouge

'Naruto' is not mine, it belongs to something Kishimoto.

'Bleach' is not mine, it belongs to Tite Kubo.

'Final Fantasy' is not mine and belongs to Square Enix.

Prologue to the Storm

An old man, bent with age takes his place by the fireside. He takes out an old pipe and fills it slowly, pretending to ignore the children clustered around him eagerly and the adults who are better hiding their impatience.

At last, he sighes and begins his tale.

----

Have you heard of the Shinobi?

The warriors of the shadows and the night,

Who fought wars of a kind that are only found in the myths of old?

You haven't?

That isn't surprising.

You young people think you know everything, and forget the important things.

There are no more Shinobi in the land of the living, save for those few who have scattered, tight-knit clans clinging to the ways of the oldest of Shinobi, who hid in the shadows of society.

But they are not the ones my story focuses on, though they will become important enough later on.

No, my story takes place in the land of the dead, where the Shinigami hold sway, fighting back the Hollow Ones and the forces of the Betrayer and the Snake.

And it focuses on one very special Shinobi who became a Shinigami.

A healer who wished to never take another life.

A young one who, in any other circumstances, would have never become a Shinobi in the first place.

His name is Hanataro Yamada, and he was one of the few Cetra left.

-----

A/N:

And here we go again.

I've been meaning to rewrite this for a while now, but it just kept being pushed aside in favor of working out the kinks in 'Liminality'. I am proud to say that I've finally gotten the first chapter of that nightmare posted (at last!) and can continue with ANBU Shinigami.

You can expect a better story over all, that not only makes more sense but is more coherent with less plot holes and (hopefully) less typoes.

If you find one, please point it out to me.


	2. Wakeing the Dragon

'Naruto' is not mine, it belongs to something Kishimoto.

'Bleach' is not mine, it belongs to Tite Kubo.

'Final Fantasy' is not mine, it belongs to Square Enix

Chapter One: Waking the Dragon

The moon's silver light shone down on Soul Society the same as it had for millennia. It's white buildings seemed to glow from within, as though they had absorbed the moons' light and were reflecting it back. The city was quiet, no one was out, not even the bars were open right now.

Too much had happened too recently for anyone to be comfortable enough to party.

Most people were asleep at this time, sleeping like the dead, exhausted from their duties as well as filling in for the injured and dead from the Ryoka attack and Aizen's betrayal.

And some were deep in the dark grasp of their nightmares.

----

Hanataro tossed again, tangling himself further in his blankets. Fear-sweat matted his over-long bangs to his face which was twisted in pain from whatever plagued his sleep.

"No…" he murmured, a pale hand lashing out at some unseen attacker, "No…_run!_" He kicked out, tangling the blankets even more around his small frame. He rolled, as though to avoid some attack and landed hard on the wooden floor of his room, jarring himself awake.

He lay there panting, ignoring the person beating on the wall to his left and the person who was doing the beating telling him to "Keep it down, damn it".

Long moments passed as he tried to force his heart back down to his chest and out of his throat. He hadn't had that dream in a long time. Not that it really surprised him, what with the Ryoka and everything. It was too much like…back then. Way back then. Times he _was not_ going to think about.

Absently, he glanced at the calendar. And sighed. Ah, that was why. He always had nightmares around this time of the year.

Lit by the full moon, it was easy to see the date circled by red ink, August 21.

The young man now called Hanataro sighed again, resigned to the fact that he wasn't going to get any more sleep tonight. _'Well, it's been a while since the outer tunnels have been surveyed and the Captain said she'd be working the night shift for a while…'_

Hanataro stepped out of the barracks and looked up at the moon. It was just over half way through the night sky.

'_Good, she should have a moment…'_ Hanataro thought, taking to the roofs in one of the few Shinobi skills that he would allow himself to practice. It would be beyond annoying to be held up by some of the idiots that would be out this late, most of which would not be compleatly sober despite the general atmosphere of Soul Society.

The professional in him detested the thought of those people being responsible for anything, while the healer in him made allowances for their personal grief. There were few who didn't know someone who had been either injured or killed, most of which passed through 4th division's sickbay in search of hangover cures or to visit those who were injured.

And all too often it was both, he knew for a fact that all too many were going to work half-drunk because the Shinigami Academy simply didn't teach them how to deal with something like this. In this way it was easy to tell who had once been a Shinobi--they were the ones who didn't show up drunk.

Captain Unohana was sitting in her office, dealing with some of the endless paperwork that seemed to be attached to her rank. Hanataro knocked quietly and slipped in when he'd been acknowledged.

"Hello Yui-kun," Captain Unohana said serenely, pretending not to notice his wince at the use of his birth name.

"Captain, please. You know I don't like to be called that," Hanataro said softly.

"It was the name that your parents gave you," she said mildly, carefully inking the last few characters of her report and set aside the brush. "It is a good name, and as much a part of you as your Zanpakuto, which I see you don't have. Again."

"I don't like carrying a sword. It's too easy to fall into old habits," Hanataro said, accepting the offered cup of tea.

Captain Unohana shook her head, "Even after all this time, you still don't trust yourself?"

His silence was as good as a written confession.

She sighed. She'd hoped that after the Ryoka affair he'd be more at ease with himself. Unfortunately, he was proving to be amazingly stubborn about the whole thing and no amount of gentle prodding could make him give her more than the basics.

She shook her head to clear it of the unnecessary thoughts that seemed to gather every time she had more than a moment's rest. The boy could be more stubborn than Captain Ukitake, and that was saying something!

"You wish to scout the outer tunnels again?" she said instead, stepping on the un-healer-ish urge to throttle the child sitting across from her. It was doubtful that it would help in any case.

Hanataro nodded, "Yes, if you don't mind. I know you don't like sending anyone down that far, but…"

She shook her head, waving aside his apologies, "Whether I like it or not, it has to be done. And it isn't as though you haven't done this kind of thing before."

The outer tunnels were rarely used, even by 4th division. Unfortunately, they could not just be abandoned, there were so many tunnels under Soul Society that if they were to collapse, it would bring the city above them below ground level.

And that wasn't even counting the lower tunnels that weren't used, period. Those went so deep that even Hanataro hadn't explored them fully. They were also home to strange creatures that would occasionally find their way into the upper tunnels, which was what made the job so dangerous. The outer tunnels were often infested with things that had crawled upward in their search for food.

It was part of the reason why he was more than happy to scout out the tunnels, it gave him a chance to kill the creatures before they hurt someone. It was also a good time to brush off old skills that he simply could not seem to abandon completely.

He shook his head at his own foolishness and left to gather the supplies he would need for his mission. And he made himself a note to remember to bring plenty of bandages this time, as well as the specialized anti-venom that was kept in stock just for this mission.

----

Captain Unohana sighed as she tried, again, to focus on her paperwork.

"Is…is there something wrong, Captain?" Her Vice-Captain asked hesitantly.

Captain Unohana shook her head, "No, I'm fine." She tried to smile reassuringly, but by the look on Isane's face it had fallen flat.

"He'll be fine," there was no need to specify which 'who', "He's never had any problems before, and he's been doing it for longer than anybody."

That was true, since Hanataro had started volunteering for that particular job, no one else had bothered. They all thought the little Shinigami was slightly insane for _wanting_ to go down there for weeks at a time, but since it was relatively harmless nobody made a big deal about it.

Captain Unohana sighed again, "I'm sorry Isane, but could you finish up here? The Captain's meeting will be starting soon and I don't want to be late."

-----

"You look down today, care to share?" Captain Ukitake said, walking with her back to her division.

"Is it that obvious?" she asked, smiling slightly.

"Yes, but only to those who know you. So, what is it that has you so concerned?"

Unohana sighed, she seemed to be doing that quite a lot lately, and said "I had to send someone out to scout the outer tunnels again, and I'm worried about their structural integrity after all of the fighting."

"Ah, and that person would have been young Hanataro, correct?"

"How did you know?"

"Kiyone was talking about it some time ago. She couldn't understand why anyone would want to go down there, and I have to admit that I'm curious as well. I wouldn't think that such a…timid individual would go down there alone voluntarily."

"Hanataro is…a very unique individual, and he has some skills that make him invaluable in this task," Captain Unohana said firmly, a hint of steel gracing gentle brown eyes.

"Right," Captain Ukitake said, "But you're still worried about him?"

"More like I'm worried about a sudden cave-in. He's the only one down there, so if something happened, then he'd be alone and there would be no one to help him. I'd thought about sending some of my own people with him, but we're stretched thin just pulling our normal duties."

"If you like, I could send my third-seats after him," he offered, grinning, "The peace and quiet would be welcome."

"If it wouldn't be any trouble," she said hesitantly, well acquainted with the hyperactive, competitive duo her fellow captain had as third-seats. She'd lost count of how many times she'd had to…remind them to behave in her infirmary.

"None at all," he said cheerfully, already looking forward to the resulting peace and quiet that he would have when they were busy somewhere else. How did Kaien deal with them?

-----

Hanataro sighed as he shifted his absurdly heavy pack on his shoulders. He was at the edge of the regularly used tunnels, from her they would only get deeper and less used. There simply wasn't any reason to come out this far.

Really, this wouldn't be so bad if the there were easy routes to the surface out here. Unfortunately, because this so far out, there weren't any access hatches for security purposes, and because no one had bothered to build them.

He sighed again.

-----

It was some time after the Captains' meeting when Captain Ukitake called both of his third seats to his office.

"Yes Captain? How can I help you?" Kiyone Kotetsu shouted out, only to be shoved aside by her counterpart, Sentaro Kotsubaki. "Go away you fool! I, Sentaro Kotsubaki, shall serve the Captain instead of you!"

Captain Ukitake tried not to sigh too loudly, it would only draw their attention.

"I have a mission for the both of you," he said calmly, hoping to avoid the majority of the arguments. "You two are to go down through the tunnels to the outer southern sector and find the scout Captain Unohana send down there and make sure he comes back in one piece," he said. The two third seats looked at their Captain for a moment.

"You want us…" Sentaro started.

"To blunder around the sewers," Kiyone continued.

"To find some fourth division member!" They finished together, not realizing that they had been speaking together in the first place.

"Exactly."

"But captain, if some fourth division person gets lost, shouldn't they send someone else from the fourth division to find him?" Sentaro asked.

Captain Ukitake sighed again, "He isn't lost, he has a map and he's been down there several times. However, these specific tunnels are the outer tunnels and are not as well kept. Sending you two down there is more a precaution than anything else. Captain Unohana is concerned that the fighting may have weakened the tunnels beyond the normal amount and that Hanataro may find himself trapped down there with no way out."

The two third-seats nodded. "Alright Captain, I shall make sure Hanataro-san comes out alive!" Sentaro saluted and was out the door with Kiyone hot on his heels.

Captain Ukitake sighed again. At least he would have some peace and quiet for a while.

-----

Hanataro was not happy.

So far, he had run into two nests of Tunnel Worms.

That alone wouldn't have been too bad, except these seemed to have escaped from the 12th division and had grown to the size of large busses. And there were at least fifteen in each nest.

Wiping goo and other assorted gunk he really didn't want to think about off of him, he pulled out his map and marked down the newest crack in the wall. This was one of the larger ones, and probably how the worms had gotten free in the first place. He'd have to ask the Captain to talk to Kurotsuchi about keeping a closer eye on his….specimens.

Hanataro suppressed a shiver at the thought of the Captain of the Twelfth Division. He reminded the former Shinobi too much of Orochimaru for him to be anywhere near comfortable with him.

"AHHHHHHHHH!"

Hanataro froze as the scream echoed down the tunnel. He had dropped his pack and was racing off toward the scream before conscious thought could tell him how much of an idiot he was. _'Damn, who the hell did the Captain send after me?'_ Sometimes there were disadvantages to appearing harmless.

Up ahead, he could see the faint glow of a torch.

He sped up.

------

Kiyone whipped out with her sword, cutting into one of the worm things. Sentaro was beside her, one hand holding up the torch. He edged back to give himself more room between the bugs and him when he felt his foot touch the wall.

"Kiyone…we have a problem…" Sentaro said as he dropped the torch and swung the sword viciously with both of his hands.

"What problem? Can't it wait?" She yelled at him, slashing at another of the worms, this one was one of the larger ones and was proving to be slightly more difficult.

"We're at the wall." He said grimly.

"Wha-argh!!" Kiyone, distracted by what he said, got stabbed through the leg just above the knee by the spear-like end of the monster.

"Kiyone!" Sentaro yelled, looking over at her in panic.

"Keep going! Don't worry about me!" she shouted at him, stabbing one of the worms through the top of the mouth and directly into the brain.

"DOWN! NOW!" an unfamiliar voice snapped out. They dropped before they realized what they were doing. Above them, a wave of heat lashed out and the worm-things screamed.

In the sudden silence, Kiyone and Sentaro dared to raise their faces from the stone floor. Their savior was a dark shadow, lit only by the strange glowing fungus along the wall.

"Aren't you the two third-seats of division thirteen?" he asked. His voice was softer than either of them expected, especially after seeing him unleash such a devastating kido.

"Yeah, we were looking for the scout that Captain Unohana sent out. Are you him?" Sentaro asked, trying to make out the guy's features in the dim lighting.

"Yes. Are either of you hurt?"

"Kiyone. One of the worm things stabbed her through the leg with it's tail or something." Sentaro said, helping said person sit up. Hanataro knelt by her side and pushed the cloth away from the wound. "Don't worry. It's not too bad, or at least it's not as bad as it looks. You're going to need stitches though, a kido spell isn't going to cover it."

Hanataro's pale blue-gray eyes met Sentaro's, "I'm going to need you to carry her, I left my pack with my medical supplies farther along this tunnel."

Sentaro nodded wordlessly and picked her up bridal-style.

Hanataro walked back along the tunnel calmly, as though he hadn't just flash-fried a bunch of worm-things. And now that his eyes had adjusted, Sentaro could see tears in his clothing as well as goo that looked a lot like worm-blood.

Kiyone and Sentaro looked at each other, then at Hanataro, then back to each other and nodded once. They were going to get answers out of him.

---------

Chapter one is finished (again).

I hope that this makes more sense than the original, though I like to think of the original as more of a first draft that I didn't pay attention to.


	3. Microcrack

'Naruto' is not mine, it belongs to something Kishimoto.

'Bleach' is not mine, it belongs to Tite Kubo.

'Final Fantasy' is not mine, it belongs to Square Enix

Chapter 2: Microcrack

The fungus cast everything in a ghostly blue light, making Hanataro seem even paler than usual and his eyes almost glow. It was very disconcerting; especially when he was covered in what Sentaro swore was worm-guts.

"Here, set Kiyone-san against the wall please," Hanataro said, digging into his pack for something. He withdrew a small white case and took out a slender, curved needle and waxed thread as well as a bottle of clear liquid from one of the side pockets.

Kneeling beside her he said, "I'm sorry, but I have to clean the wound first." Kiyone nodded, dazed from a combination of pain, adrenaline and confusion. "Clench your teeth," he ordered, unscrewing the clear bottle. He quickly dumped it over the wound and stitched it immediately to spare her as much pain as possible.

"There, that should do it until you get back to the surface," Hanataro said tying off the bandage he used to cover the stitches.

"What do ya mean 'back to the surface'?" Sentaro shouted. "We were ordered by our captain to make sure you got out of here alive, and that's what we're going to do!" Sentaro finished at a yell, fist clenched in front of him for emphasis. Hanataro frowned, "You guys can't come with me. For one thing, Kiyone-san shouldn't be walking _anywhere _until her wound heals, and for another there are more dangerous things down here then tunnel worms."

"That's _why_ we need to come with you," Kiyone said, voicing her agreement to Sentaro's idea.

Hanataro sighed, "I can defend myself just fine, " he said exasperated, "You saw how I took care of those tunnel worms." As soon as he said that he cursed himself for bringing their attention to his attack.

"Speaking about that, what you used wasn't a Kido spell, was it?" Kiyone asked, pinning him with an impressive glare.

Impressive considering that she looked like a corpse about to fall over. Sentaro took one look at his counterparts' face and decided that he should just sit this one out.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Hanataro said, putting his supplies back in his pack. It was a good thing that he had something to do with his hands, otherwise their trembling would have given him away in a heartbeat.

"Don't play dumb with me Yamada," Kiyone snarled, "There's no way in Hell that was a Kido. You didn't say any incantation or anything. And you didn't use anywhere near enough spiritual energy as a Kido would use. What the Hell did you do?"

"Why does it matter to you?" Hanataro turned to the two of them, "It's not anything illegal and considering I just saved you from becoming worm-food, I'd think I'd be entitled to my secrets!"

Kiyone was not one to be dissuaded so easily.

"What the hell do you mean, 'why'?" She snapped, "Whatever you used, it used far less spiritual energy than a kido would, and was as strong as something in the upper levels. Now what the hell did you do?"

"She has a point, Yamada-san," Sentaro said, trying to head things off before Kiyone passed out. "If it isn't illegal, then why won't you tell us?"

"Because it isn't exactly legal either!" Hanataro snapped, "Look, the only reason it's not illegal is because we don't advertise what we know. If the wrong person was to find out, it could get us killed, or at least expelled from Soul Society."

Kiyone and Sentaro froze. "Is it really that dangerous?" Kiyone asked at last, much of her previous fire gone. Hanataro shook his head, and he suddenly seemed much more like the perpetually-tired Shinigami that they had known on the surface.

"The techniques are not dangerous so much as they are…delicate. To do even the most basic requires control on a level that isn't taught at the Academe. And…they were not developed by Shinigami at all." He shook his head, "There isn't any good reason why I should tell you anything more than what I've already said. You should go back to the surface. I can handle myself down here."

"W-wait!" Sentaro shouted, "You can't just leave us here!"

"You got down here on your own, you can leave the same way," Hanataro said mildly, "After all, you're third seats, aren't you?"

"But l'm not strong enough," Kiyone whispered softly, so softly Hanataro almost didn't hear her. He froze in his tracks, then turned back around slowly. Kiyone continued, more to herself than to the two males around her, "When the Ryoka came, I wasn't strong enough. When Aizen betrayed us, I wasn't strong enough." She looked him in the eyes, "My sister is going to be on the front lines, and I don't even have Shikai. I don't know the name of my Zanpakuto. I am not strong enough to protect those who are important to me."

Hanataro looked at her as though seeing her for the first time, as though he was looking at a young Genin. His gaze strayed to Sentaro, who met his eyes squarely, "I don't know the name of my Zanpakuto either," he admitted, "We never got the chance, before Kaien-sempai died, and afterwards we were too busy following the Captain. I don't have any relations…at least none that are in Soul Society. But…if Aizen succeeds, then they could die. I became a Shinigami to protect them."

Hanataro sighed and looked up to the ceiling that was lost in the darkness, as though he was looking for a sign of some kind. Memories long suppressed surged to the surface, of times before his death. His uncle would be thrilled, to have two such eager students.

He dragged his gaze back to the two of them. "I will not be an easy teacher," he warned them, "If you want to learn enough to help in the Winter War, then you will have to learn quickly. And you must stop arguing between yourselves." He glared at the two of them, "I will not tolerate it, and I have no clue why Captain Ukitake does. It only causes problems for everyone around you and in battle it could get you killed. Worse, it could get your comrades or subordinates killed."

The two of them gulped and nodded. Hanataro's eyes had gone cold, like chips of ice or the winter sky. It was disturbing to see the normally gentle healers' eyes turn so…deadly. Sentaro and Kiyone wondered briefly what their new teacher had in his past that would give him eyes like that.

And then the harshness was gone, replaced by the gentle eyes of the healer. "You can't learn anything with a wound like that," Hanataro said, kneeling down beside Kiyone. "Now, watch closely. It's been a while since I've had to do this, so be quiet."

He kneeled down by her injured leg and pushed back the tattered black cloth. Carefully he unwrapped the bandages and made some strange hand seals. Before they could ask what he was doing, his hands lit up with a beautiful green glow. Lowering his hands, he placed them just above the wound. Kiyone inhaled sharply as she felt the strange energy from his hands, but relaxed when she felt the soothing warmth that came with it.

A few minutes later, he removed his hands. "There, done." Kiyone blinked and looked at her leg, there was no wound and the stitches that were in her leg were missing. "Hey! When did you take out the stitches?" she demanded, looking at the slightly grinning Shinigami.

"When I was in the middle of my Jutsu," Hanataro said, standing and brushing dirt off of himself, "You weren't paying any attention to anything, so I figured that it would be best to do it then." He explained, holding out a hand to help her up.

"Come on, I'll have to give you your first lesson while we move. I still have a job to do down here, ne?"

"Hold on a second-if you can heal Kiyone's wound instantly like that, then why haven't you healed Captain Ukitake?" Sentaro demanded angrily. Hanataro looked back at them and shook his head sadly, "I've already thought about that…to heal a cut is simple. All that has to be done is accelerate the natural healing process by using one's own energy as fuel. But to heal an illness like Captain Ukitake's…I was trained for combat, not healing. Something like that is far beyond my skills."

"But someone else might know how." Kiyone hurried to catch up to their new sensei, "You said that there were others like you who lived in Soul Society, wouldn't one of them…" Hanataro was already shaking his head, "No. If someone did, then chances are they would have brought it to Captain Unohana's attention. And before you ask, yes, she knows about us. Most of us have served in fourth at one time or another."

"What are you anyway?" Sentaro demanded, frowning, "You keep dancing around it, so just tell us already!"

"I'm a Shinobi." In the dim lighting, his grin looked almost demonic.

He walked on, leaving two dumbfounded Shinigami standing frozen in place.

"WHAT THE HELL!?!" they chorused, "YOU'RE A NINJA?!"

Hanataro couldn't help it, he laughed so hard he doubled over. Looking back at them, he asked "Is it that hard to believe?"

"Damn right it is!" Kiyone shouted, catching up with him again, "You don't look anything like a Ninja. You can't even remember where your Zanpakuto is and you expect us to believe something like that?"

Hanataro shook his head, "I know exactly where I put my Zanpakuto. I don't carry it as a general rule. It's too easy to fall into old habits. Reflexes are hard to break, especially when they keep you alive for a long period of time." He shrugged, "I'd rather not tempt fate."

The two Shinigami were looking at him oddly and he frowned, "What? Do I have something on my face?"

"Uh, Hanataro…" Kiyone started, not quite sure how to say what she wanted to say without sounding rude.

"Aren't you exaggerating just a little bit?" Sentaro finished for her, the same though going through his mind.

Hanataro chuckled, "I guess it might seem that way to the two of you, but think about it this way. People rarely look past first impressions. If all they see is a weak, clumsy idiot from the fourth division, then they aren't likely to question any…quirks that he might have. Most of us do something similar, or we go into divisions where it's commonplace. A lot of us have ended up in either the eleventh or the second. Some of us even go into the Kido Corps. It's basic psychology really." And now the two of them were looking like he'd sprouted a second head.

"So…if you've just been faking it the whole time….how strong are you really…?" Sentaro asked. He'd like to say that the little Shinigami/Shinobi was pulling his leg but there was something…different about him right now. It was as though the weight that seemed to be following him around was gone. Maybe it was relief?

"I'm…not sure really. It's been a long time since I've been able to really train," he shrugged uncomftorably, "It's not really important, but if you have to know, I was in the upper levels." He looked them over, "While we're walking…instead of a history lesson, I'll get you started on a control exercise that everyone goes through eventually. Normally, it wouldn't be taught to you until you've gotten a few Jutsu down, but you need the control from the technique before I begin to teach you anything."

"Cool! So what are we doing?" Kiyone asked eagerly.

"Climbing walls."

"Huh?"

"Watch me," Hanataro said, setting his pack aside. He went through the motions of gathering a small amount of energy through a hand seal and walked to the wall. He kept walking, until he was almost thirty feet up and turned around. "This is pretty basic. The trick is to use a small amount of spirit energy, we called it 'Chakra', and glue yourself to the wall. It's like making suction cups for your feet. You use the hand seal for a focus, like the incantation for a kido."

He dropped lightly to the ground, landing soundlessly on the stone floor, "And the same technique can be used to soften your landings when you fall." He grinned at their expressions, he was grinning a lot lately and said, "Do you believe I'm a Shinobi now?"

They nodded silently. Neither had seem the Kido Corps. do anything like this before.

"Be careful, too much energy and you'll blast yourself off the wall, and there are a lot of nasty things in the canal. Too little and you won't stick in the first place. I want you to follow me from along the celing until you don't have to concentrate on controlling your energy anymore."

And with that, he left his 'students' to their task, snickering at the first of their (many) thumps and curses.

-------

Someone was kicking him, and when he found out who it was, they were going to be doing laps for he rest of the day. Sentaro groaned and opened his eyes. Hanataro stood over him, an exasperated look etched on his pale features. "Sentaro, we need to get going. I have a schedule to keep."

"Nugh."

"I know you were up late last night, so was I. Now we need to get going. If you're not up soon, then I'm going to leave you here."

"Argh," Sentaro's eyes drifted shut and he rolled over. He'd wake up at a more reasonable hour, thanks.

"Here, let me do it," Kiyone said, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, "He won't get up if you're nice about it," she explained as she swiftly drew back her foot and kicked him in the ass. Sentaro yelped and sat up, glaring sleepily at Kiyone. "The hell?" He demanded, rubbing his abused posterior.

"We're leaving in fifteen minutes, baka. If you want food, then get your lazy ass up," Kiyone sapped as she went back to her blankets and started folding them.

Hanataro looked between the two of them for a moment, a thoughtful look on his face. Perhaps it wouldn't be impossible to teach them how to work together. He doubted it would be easy though, they seemed to enjoy arguing with each other. He chuckled, at least they would provide him with some entertainment.

When Sentaro had woken up enough to be coherent, he inhaled his breakfast at light speed and managed to get his blankets ready to go in a reasonable amount of time. Hanataro decided that this must be a regular thing from the way Kiyone was not-so-subtly rolling her eyes.

The rest of the day was filled with the two of them attempting to follow Hanataro as he marked the cracks in the wall. Of course, they fell occasionally, and when one would fall, the other would laugh at them and then loose concentration and fall as well. It was usually Sentaro who fell first, while Kiyone would fall from laughter.

Hanataro just sighed and continued marking cracks in the wall.

-------

It had been three days since he had taken the two third-seats of division thirteen as his students.

"Oi! Hanataro-Sensei! Are we going to learn anything else now? We've been up here for hours!" Sentaro demanded, hanging upside down from the ceiling. Hanataro looked up, "You're still up there? I'd forgotten all about you."

"Gah!" The two Shinobi-in-training fell to the floor in a heap. They glared at their Sensei, who looked only mildly sheepish.

"Sorry, but you'd been so quite, I thought I'd lost you somewhere along the way and you'd gotten eaten by something," he shrugged as though it were no big deal. "Well, now that you have that exercise down, you can start practicing hand seals. "

He showed them each seal and gave them a short explanation as to what it's specific purpose was. He had them go over the seals for the rest of the day, calling out each one at random times and later on calling out long strings of them.

The two of them were so focused on forming the seals as fast as they could, they didn't have the time to argue. By the end of the day, their hands were sore and they all but fell into their beds. Hanataro sighed and decided that a late start wouldn't be a bad thing.

There was no sense in wearing them out before the hard stuff started.

-----

It was on the sixth day that they learned their first Shinobi Jutsu.

"Ok, this is one of the simplest Jutsu," Hanataro said, "Watch what I do." He went through the seals slowly, so they knew which ones to use and then…_'poof'_….he'd switched places with his pack, ten feet away.

"It's called the Kawamari no Jutsu, and it's simple as far as far as Jutsu go. It doesn't take a lot of spiritual energy, so don't just pour your energy into it. Sentaro, you try it first. Focus on my pack and try to change places with it."

Sentaro nodded and formed the seals, muttering the name of the Jutsu. Unfortunately for him, his aim was a bit…off.

Instead of changing places with Hanataro's pack, he somehow found himself holding a bewildered Kiyone…and he had his hand touching something it shouldn't.

"Sentaro…put me down. Now." Kiyone growled dangerously. Sentaro nodded and dropped her, backing away slowly. He honestly hadn't meant to grope her, but…he gulped and edged farther away from Kiyone.

Hanataro sighed, and chuckled. At least he didn't end up in the canal. He'd seen worst first tries, though he doubted that saying so would help Sentaro any right now.

-----

It took them three days to get the Jutsu down to Hanataro's satisfaction. In that time, he'd had them get used to focusing on smaller and smaller targets, until they were using pebbles. On the plus side, Sentaro and Kiyone were getting along better than ever and Hanataro though that he just might get done on schedule despite them.

"Now, this one is slightly harder, but not too hard. It's an illusion Jutsu, but only very basic so don't try to do anything too fancy with it," he warned them, hands twisting slowly into the required seals. There was the 'poof' of smoke and suddenly the two of them were staring at General Yamamoto.

"This is only effective if you know exactly what your target looks like," the 'General' said before 'poof'ing back into Hanataro, "Now you try. Turn yourselves into me."

A few seconds later he was looking at two very deformed versions of himself. He sweat-dropped, "You have to focus for this one, it's like taking a mental photograph of the person you're trying to turn into."

He took out his map for the day and said, "Turn into each other while we walk, and try not to wake up any sleeping worms this time."

The two third seats chuckled uneasily. They didn't actually need to be told that, but it was too much to hope for that he'd just let things go.

Hanataro snickered quietly, he'd be able to tease them with that for years. Who'd have thought that they'd manage to land themselves in a nest of baby worms?

------

It took them another two days to get the Henge no Jutsu down to his satisfaction.

He looked critically at the 'Sentaro' and 'Kiyone' standing in front of him, circling each of them. Finally, he nodded. "That's well enough for now, though if you can you should keep working on it. It may be a basic technique, but if you can do it well, then you'll be able to fool most people who aren't Shinobi."

"So a Shinobi would be able to tell when we're using something like Henge?" Kiyone asked interestedly. Hanataro nodded, "The technique bends light around you, making the illusion. It's not hard to tell when someone's using it because the technique makes a sort of patterned weave around your body. The weave is always the same, so if you learn to spot it on one person, then you can spot it on the next. Then there's the little inconsistencies, like a wavering effect in coloration, or one sleeve being slightly longer than the other."

"Moving on, this will be the last technique that I can teach you in the time remaining," Hanataro said, "It's called the 'Bunshin no Jutsu' and it creates insubstantial clones of yourself. Combined with Henge, it can make a wonderful distraction."

He went through the seals slowly and suddenly there were four more of him.

"Cool," Kiyone whispered.

"Very. But remember that these are insubstantial. One hit, even a heavy tap, will send them packing. They can't hit anything either. Their main purpose is distraction."

The two Shinigami looked at each other and grinned wildly. They formed the seals as fast as they could and wound up with several rather sick looking clones.

Kiyone glared at them as though it was their fault the technique hadn't worked.

"Don't worry so much, you have four days including today to get it before we get to the surface. Just try not to put so much energy into it," Hanataro said, sweat-dropping. Kiyone nodded sourly as Sentaro smirked. His didn't look nearly as bad.

Kiyone waited until Hanataro had turned around again and aimed a kick at Sentaro's ankle. It was her turn to smirk as Sentaro growled in pain and hopped around on his uninjured foot.

Hanataro did his best to ignore the two of them and continued marking the map.

-------

It was the last day.

The fungus was disappearing as they came ever-closer to the upper tunnels. The two of them had gotten Henge down well enough that a casual observer wouldn't be able to tell them apart and were now engaged in a contest to see how long they could keep the Henge in place.

"Hey, Sensei," the Kiyone-who-looked-like-Sentaro asked, "What are we going to do now?"

"About what?" Hanataro asked absently, looking at the two branches of the tunnel. If he remembered correctly, the one on the left should take them back to fourth division without crossing the main paths.

"Well, you won't be able to teach us as much when we get back to the surface," Kiyone said, letting the Henge drop. Sentaro pouted and let his drop too. He couldn't call it a win if she let it drop voluntarily and they were getting closer to the surface anyway.

"I mean, we have our duties to the Captain, and you have your duties to Captain Unohana…"Kiyone trailed off, "You will still teach us, right?"

Hanataro nodded, "Yes Kiyone. I'll teach you as much as I can. Actually, it's not as much of a problem as you think. I don't think that anyone would raise too many questions if you started learing medical kido, what with you serving under Captain Ukitake." He grinned at the two of them, "And if you get your work done early, I don't think Captain Ukitake would mind letting you have the rest of the day to yourself."

The gateway to the surface loomed above them and they stepped out into the bright afternoon sunlight for the first time in two weeks.

-------

Captain Ukitake looked his two third seats.

"So let me get this straight," Captain Ukitake said slowly, trying to rub away the impending headache, "You want to take the afternoons off so you can learn medical kido from Hanataro Yamada."

The two of them nodded. "He already taught us some of the basics," Kiyone said, "And we promise to get all of our work done before we leave."

Breifly, Captain Ukitake wondered where their newfound corporation had come from. Perhaps Yamada had something to do with it? He shook his head, the poor boy was one of the most timid people he'd ever met. On the other hand… "Very well, as long as you can get your work done on time, then I don't see a problem. Just let me know when you leave so I know where to find you."

They nodded in unison and left. Captain Ukitake heard them running off as soon as the door closed. He groaned and downed his tea, he honestly wasn't sure if he wanted to know why they had developed such an interest in medical Kido.

-------

Captain Unohana looked up as the quiet presence entered her office. Hanataro gave her a Look, "I didn't really need the backup you know. They almost got themselves killed, carrying a torch and attracting the tunnel worms like they did."

Captain Unohana frowned and set down her writing brush, "Are they alright."

Hanataro nodded, his entire demeanor more like the Shinobi he used to be rather than the Shinigami he pretended to be. "They were close enough that I heard them scream," he said dryly, "I ended up using a Jutsu to clear out the worms. They've decided that they want to learn how to use Jutsu as well."

Captain Unohana looked at the little Shinigami. He seemed almost…amused. "What exactly happened down there?"

Hanataro's lips threatened to twitch into a smile, "They talked me into teaching them what I know about the Shinobi arts. I started them out with a basic control exercise, the tree-climbing exercise though I had them use the walls and follow me from the ceiling." He paused and then said, "Does Vice-Captain Kotetsu know that her sister is rather…creative when it comes to her cursing?"

Captain Unohana just looked at her seventh seat officer, "I don't know."

Hanataro shrugged, "She likely learned it from Sentaro. It was an interesting two weeks in any case. I have most of my report done, with most of the details inside. I was able to teach them the three Jutsu taught to the Academe students in that time. They even managed to work together during the latter part of the trip."

"I will look forward to reading your report," Captain Unohana said, folding her hands inside her Haori. She couldn't fathom what force could get the two of them to work together voluntarily.

There was a clamor outside her office, and the two third seats of division thirteen tumbled through the door, landing in a heap.

"Eh heh heh…Sorry Captain Unohana, but someone said that Hanataro was here and we wanted to know when we should show up for lessons…" Kiyone said sheepishly from ontop of Sentaro.

"Ah, yes. I shall assume that you've talked to Captain Ukitake?" Captain Unohana said mildly, raising an eyebrow. Kiyone nodded eagerly and looked at Hanataro, who frowned in thought. "Let's see….I have tomorrow off, and then during the evenings for the rest of the month. That should do for now, right?"

Captain Unohana nodded, "Now that you have students, I'll see what I can do about your shift schedule. You've planned for evening lessons, correct?" The three nodded. "Then that shouldn't be much of a problem. Kiyone, shouldn't you let Sentaro off of the floor?"

Kiyone blushed and leapt off of Sentaro as though he were on fire.

"Captain, I have some things I need to attend to…" Hanataro said, deciding to leave while he still could. Otherwise his Captain might decide to -talk- and he'd rather not. Captain Unohana nodded absently, thinking about what she'd need to shift around in the personal schedules. "Take the rest of the day off as well, I wasn't expecting you back until sometime later tonight anyway."

Hanataro nodded and left, winking at his two students.

Things were getting interesting now. He wondered what people would say about someone like him taking on students.


	4. Shining Will

'Naruto' is not mine, it belongs to something Kishimoto.

'Bleach' is not mine, it belongs to Tite Kubo.

'Final Fantasy' is not mine, it belongs to Square Enix

Authors' Note:

This is important, so don't skip it please.

A couple of you have pointed out the unlikelihood of Sentaro and Kiyone not having Shikai. I have a reason for this, and it's not as unlikely as you would think if you take into account their personalities: they're constantly fighting with each other, high-strung and short tempered. Not to mention they follow their Captain around everywhere, help to run the division when Captain Ukitake is sick and drink all the time. . I get the feeling that while they have a lot of strength, they don't have any control.

They don't have the mental maturity to get Shikai, nor do they have the time to devote to getting it.

One thing I've noticed is that people writing for this fandom tend to abuse Zanpakuto in that they come up with new ones all the time to solve any problem, using them as a way to make characters extremely powerful with little effort. Or to create plot-twists that don't need to be there.

Witness Ichigo, and he's a cannon character.

To try and keep things more balanced, characters that have not expressively been stated to have a Zanpakuto will not have one. Captains and Vice-Captains will have one, Ikkaku and Yumichika will have one, Ichigo will have one, and so will the other canon characters that have already been shown to have one. But a random Shinigami off the street will likely not have one.

I know that Hanataro-from-canon has one, but not my Hanataro. My Hanataro has some issues to work through before he gets one.

Chapter three: Shining Will

It had been one week since Hanataro had come back from the eventful trip with the two third seats of division thirteen. Who were now his Shinobi apprentices, more or less.

Currently, it was five in the morning, when most people would be asleep. Most, but not all. Early morning was the time when the Fourth was most active, taking care of their cleaning duties when nobody was around to cause…problems.

Hanataro hummed softly to himself in line with his appearance as a meek and timid normal Shinigami. It wasn't even completely a lie, he didn't mind being a medic, or cleaning, or doing any of the other myriad tasks that fell to the fourth division. Early mornings like this were the most relaxing part of his day.

By the time he got back to the main Hospital, dawn had passed and the sun was well on its way to the middle of the sky. The normal sound of Soul Society passed over him in a pleasant buzz as he darted through the crowed. He nodded to Captain Unohana, busy routing a group of eleventh division glorified thugs who were more interested in causing a fight than getting their current wounds treated.

Raina, a Shinobi he knew from Konoha, nodded as he passed and he nodded back, already on his way to the ward in which he and his unit were to be working in. He was tempted to roll his eyes at yet another tale from a new graduate who had left his unsheathed sword lying around where he could trip over it. Didn't they learn anything at the Academe?

The rest of the day passed in something of a blur of monotony.

It seemed like only minutes later when he ushered the last of his patients out the door for the evening.

He grinned. It was early afternoon, and by now Sentaro and Kiyone should be done with their work. Even if they weren't, Captain Unohana had said that Captain Ukitake had wanted to talk with him.

He made excellent time in getting to the thirteenth division. One of the perks of being in the fourth was that you learned the fastest routes between two points. Even if roof-hopping would have been faster.

The Captain's office was set in a small building suspended above a large pond. He shrugged, it was common knowledge that the Captains were all slightly…eccentric and considering that Captain Ukitake's Zanpakuto was a pair of fish it wasn't that hard to accept.

He knocked softly on the door, and entered to find an office much like Captain Unohanas'. The major difference being where her's held flower arrangements, Captain Ukitake's held a few tasteful silk paintings.

"Come in and sit down," Captain Ukitake said, looking up from some of the paperwork that all Captains seemed to be cursed with in a never ending supply. "I'll be just a minute, I'm almost done. You're earlier than I expected."

"I just got done with my shift Captain," Hanataro said respectfully, "Being a member of fourth allows one to learn the quickest ways to get from one side of Soul Society to the next."

"I see," Captain Ukitake said, setting aside the finished paperwork, "So, my two third seats are getting you to teach them medical kido?"

"Yes Captain."

Captain Ukitake shook his head, "Do you know, since they've come back they've actually started to be civil to each other?" he asked rhetorically. "Not only that, but they seem to have gained a much finer control over their spiritual energy."

"Medical kido requires a much finer control over ones' spiritual energy," Hanataro said, unsure if the Captain was just making small talk or looking for specific information, "That's why most of us don't have the same quantity of spiritual energy that those in other division have. The more energy you have, the harder it is to control." He shrugged slightly. He wasn't lying. Everything he just said was true…it just didn't quite apply to what he was teaching Sentaro and Kiyone.

"I see. That makes sense. I can't see someone like Ichigo being able to use a medical kido despite how much raw power he has," Captain Ukitake mused. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean interrogate you. I was just curious as to how you got them to work together."

Hanataro allowed himself to smile, "That was actually the easiest part. Either they work together or I stop teaching them," he said simply. "As a member of fourth, I have to take care of those who were injured in the Ryoka invasion as well as those injured by Aizen's betrayal. That's not counting those injured in the recent Hollow patrols and cleaning duties." He smiled slightly wider at the look on the Captain's face, "I don't have the time to deal with two people who are going to spend more time arguing than learning."

"I hadn't realized that fourth got stuck with so much work," Captain Ukitake said, impressed, "And you managed to find time for the two of them even with all you have to do?"

"Most of the cleaning is done between three and ten in the morning, and my shift at the hospital goes from ten thirty to around four," Hanataro shrugged again, "Captain Unohana was able to set things up so I could keep my current hours for a while. As long as I get everything done well, then there shouldn't be any difficulties."

"I…see," Captain Ukitake said. He'd have to see if there was anything his squad could do to help make things easier on Fourth Division. No wonder the kid always seemed to look tired. "Well, Sentaro and Kiyone should be barging in here anytime now. Would you like a cup of tea in the mean time?"

Hanataro hesitated, and then nodded. He didn't have anywhere else to be and he was curious about the Captain as well. The tea was good, lending a soothing strength and easing the tension that came from dealing with ungrateful idiots all day.

"That good, huh?" Captain Ukitake asked, not quite laughing. Hanataro eyed the Captain over the rim of his cup and said, "Sir, with all due respect in the last five hours I've had to deal with an idiot who tripped over his own sword and nearly severed his foot and was taking it out on the rest of us, a…person from the eleventh who was drunk and seemed more interested in putting holes in the wall than getting the gash over his ribs fixed and another from twelfth who was sure he knew my job better than I did and almost killed himself with an overdose of medicine that was supposed to be for the person next to him. Those three were the most agreeable people of the day."

Captain Ukitake had not expected an answer from the petit Shinigami, let alone one delivered in so dry a tone. He laughed, "Surely you're exaggerating!"

This time Hanataro really did roll his eyes, "No, I'm not. Sir, nobody likes the Fourth division. They really don't like telling us what idiotic thing they did to injure themselves either. Some days, it's not so bad and we're just ignored. Others…well, there are ways of dealing with uncooperative patients."

Captain Ukitake raised an eyebrow and Hanataro elaborated, "Sometimes it's easier to knock them out and wake them up when we're done. They just think it's a side effect that medical kido have on some patients. The ones who cause the most trouble are usually repeat offenders, so it's not so hard to get away with." Hanataro 's grin was downright mischievous. And looked far too much like what he remembered Yourichi's smile to look like when she had a Plan.

Captain Ukitake looked at Hanataro incredulously, "You knock them out?"

"It's hard to set somebody's arm when they're trying to turn you into pulp," Hanataro said simply, finishing his tea, "Knocking them out is simply easier on everyone involved. It's not painful, and most don't even notice."

There was a knock on the door and Sentaro and Kiyone stomped in under large stacks of paperwork.

"Captain, we've got the last of it done," Sentaro said, not noticing the little Shinigami seated behind him. Hanataro's mouth twitched upward and stood quietly. "The Division's all ready as far as drills go," Kiyone continued, "We've got Taroshi to lead them for the next week. He's better at swordwork anyway."

"So, does that mean you're ready to go then?" Hanataro asked, making the two of them jump. Kiyone clutched her pounding heart, "Hanataro! How long have you been there?" She demanded, telling her heart to slow down damn it.

He smiled serenely, "I've been here for the last half-hour or so."

Captain Ukitake laughed, "Well, I won't hold you two up any longer. Just be on time tomorrow morning." He waved the three of them out the door, "Hanataro-san, I enjoyed our conversation, feel free to drop by any time."

-------

Hanataro led them through the streets of Seireitei. More accurately, he led them through the twisting back streets away from the more heavily traveled main streets. It didn't take long for them to become completely lost.

"Hana-Sensei, where are we going?" Kiyone asked, trailing behind him. For such a short person, Hanataro could move very quickly.

"There's a place for Shinobi to train, out near fourth division. There shouldn't be anyone there at this time, so it's safe enough for us to use," Hanataro replied without slowing down.

They came out in what looked like a remote training ground with a small pond in one corner. Hanataro led them down to the edge of the water, "You two did well on the tree-walking exercise, so I'm going to start you on the next one. This is the water-walking exercise." He walked out calmly to the center of the small pond to the astonishment of his two students.

"It works on the same principal as the tree-walking exercise, but you need more control. The bottom of the pond is uneven, so you have to constantly adjust how much energy you use." He walked back and gestured at the pond. "You don't get to learn anything new until you can walk on water."

He walked over to a boulder and sat down, a book appearing out of nowhere.

Not for the first time did Sentaro and Kiyone wonder about their petite Sensei.

"You're going to get wet, so I suggest you get this done before the sun sets, it's going to be cold tonight." Hanataro said without looking up.


	5. Sharp Will, Dull Blade

'Naruto' is not mine, it belongs to something Kishimoto.

'Bleach' is not mine, it belongs to Tite Kubo.

'Final Fantasy' is not mine, it belongs to Square Enix

A/N: Sorry, I'd thought i finished it....guess not. This is the compleated chapter, honest!

Chapter 5: Sharp Will, Dull Blade

"Ya know, things are starting to heat up beyond the gates," Kai said one sunny afternoon in a lull between patients. Hanataro 'hun'd his agreement, not looking up from whatever book he was reading. Kai didn't bother looking, it was likely to be some fantasy novel or something. Again.

"We might have to move faster than we planned if this keeps up."

Again Hanataro 'hun'd his agreement, turning the page.

"Damn it Yui-" Kai hissed, glaring at his brother, "These Shinigami know shit about fighting a Shinobi! They'll be slaughtered!"

Hanataro sighed, "So what do you want me to do about it?" he asked plainly, marking his page to come back to later. He had the feeling that this was going to be a long conversation. By the look on Kai's face, he was right.

"Where are you going with this?" he asked, hoping to get this over with quickly.

"You know damn well where I'm going with this," Kai hissed and for a second Hanataro was reminded of the fierce demon of sand and wind that had stood beside him so long ago. "Those incidents are not a coincidence. Shinobi are disappearing, and you know damn well that Hollows aren't any match for one of us. On top of that, they were primarily from Oto, Iwa or Kusa. Aizen is gathering Shinobi from Rugonkai and he is going to use them against Seireitei. Damn it all Yui, we're looking at a full-scale _slaughter_."

Hanataro froze. He knew his brother wouldn't lie to him, not about something like this, but at the same time he didn't want to believe it. He'd known that things were moving beyond the gates, but he'd never dreamed about something like this. The idea of Aizen being reinforced by Shinobi was…less than comforting.

Hanataro let go of a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Kai….I understand what you're getting at, but I've fought my war. Do you even remember how many you've killed? I don't. Far over a hundred, I know that. Likely over three hundred in the six years that we fought. I'm a healer now, I've no wish to add to the blood already on my hands."

Kai stood there silently, the sun streaming through the window adding golden highlights to his brilliant red hair. Hanataro sighed, feeling more tired that he had in a long time, "I'm done Kai. Konoha is no more, all our killing couldn't save it. There are enough fighters here that one more won't make a difference, but one healer might."

-------

"What do you mean Rukia Kuchiki and Renji Arabari disappeared?!" General Yamamoto thundered.

All of the gathered captains flinched as his reiatsu flared uncomfortably.

"Captain Kuchiki, I trust that you had no knowledge about this?" General Yamamoto turned his gaze upon the head of the Kuchiki clan. Captain Kuchiki felt the air around him grow uncomfortably heavy.

"I have no prior knowledge of their activities," he said softly, "However, I assume that they went after Ichigo Kurosaki, who in turn went after Orihime Inoue."

General Yamamoto nodded, "Then there is nothing to be done. We must prepare for the Winter War. They have made their choice, I will decide upon their fate if they return."

General Yamamoto stood, "Be on your guard, Aizen's forces have begun to move. There have been reports of humans in the outer districts with strange powers that call themselves 'Shinobi'."

-------

"Did you hear? Vice Captain Arabari…"

"Rukia-san too…"

"I hear that the Substitute Shinigami…"

Kai listened to the rumors and general chatter of the Fourth division as he drained his bottle of sake. This was not of the good.

"So, you learn anything new?"

Vice Captain Nanao Ise pushed her glasses a bit farther up her nose and shook her head. "Everything runs in the same vein. Rumor built on rumor with the facts impossible to distinguish."

Kai sighed and nodded, "And the Captains?"

"Wary, but they're not going to do anything but get ready for the war. With luck, Aizen will be too busy dealing with Kurosaki to focus on us."

Kai shrugged, not at all bothered by the cold calculation held within that statement. Nanao Ise was responsible for coordinating the Shinobi of Seireitei, a sort of unofficial Kage, and as such knew more about what was happening at any given moment than the Captains.

If she said that they weren't going to do anything, then they weren't going to do anything.

-------

"Alright, get off the water please," Hanataro said, shaking his head at the antics of his two students. They had inadvertently discovered the Shinobi equivalent of water-skiing and had been chasing each other around the pond for the better part of the last hour.

On the other hand, their control had improved drastically.

"You both can do Shunpo, correct?"

He got two nods as his very wet students sat on the grass to dry out in the sun.

"Shinobi have something similar, though it's more suited to long-distance travel. To put it simply, Shunpo is good for crossing short distances very quickly while the Shinobi method, which doesn't actually have a name, is good for going long distances quickly."

Hanataro stood up and brushed off his hakama, "It's actually very simple, you use reiatsu to speed up your movements. Focus it on your legs and…" He blurred, moving so fast that it was impossible to track him. "run like you normally would."

Kiyone yelped, and turned around so fast she almost hit Sentaro. Hanataro was standing behind her with that maddening little grin he got when he was teaching. They had dubbed it the 'I-know-something-you-don't-and-it's-gonna-bite-you-in-the-ass' grin. That was more than enough to know that this was not going to be nearly as easy as he'd made it look.

They were right.

Covered in dust, bruises and a few minor cuts, they lay on the ground, panting as they glared at their not-so-innocent teacher.

"You seem to have gotten the hang of it rather quickly," Hanataro said, smiling innocently as though he hadn't just watched them slam though a tree or four from over-powered jumps. Sentaro raised his head and muttered something impolite while Kiyone nodded.

"Heh, I thought I heard something breaking over here," Kai said, waltzing in. "Teaching them to monkey around?" he grinned at his shorter brother. Hanataro rolled his eyes, "Sentaro, Kiyone this is my brother, Kai no Sabaku. Kai, you already know who these two are. And they're doing really well for not having done this before."

Kai grinned and shrugged, "Didn't say they weren't. I just didn't think they would over power things so much."

"It isn't really their fault," Hanataro said mildly, "Kido take far more energy than our techniques."

"Our? You mean he's a Shinobi too?" Kiyone piped up from her position to look at the grinning red-head.

"Yup. What- you think I'd let my little brother be a Shinobi without me? Hell, he'd have gotten himself killed right off the bat," Kai smirked and used Hanataro's shoulder to prop his arm up, which he used to support his head. Hanataro batted him off irritably. "Did you have a reason for coming down here? I thought you were working right now."

"I am dearest little brother," Kai chirped in that way that all elder brothers had that managed to piss off little brothers around the world, "Captain Unohana told me to tell you that Captain Ukitake needs his minions back."

"Oi!" Sentaro sat up, "We aren't minions. We're third seat officers."

"No. You're minions until further notice."

-------

"Give Orihime back," Ichigo Kurosaki snarled. It didn't seem to register with him that he was bloody, injured and about to fall over.

"And why would I do that?" Aizen said mildly, a complete contradiction to Ichigo's feral rage.

"Because if you don't, I'll cut you in half," Ichigo threatened, only sheer stubborn keeping him on his feet.

Aizen laughed lightly, "You mean to cut me in half? You can barely stand. You don't have the power to cut me down. It isn't wise to threaten someone with no power to back yourself up. And besides that, my partner has a…professional interest in Miss Inoue."

"Who the hell would that be?" Ichigo snarled, "Some other Seireitei trator?"

Aizen laughed again, "No. In fact, he isn't even a Shinigami. Tell me what do you know about Shinobi?"

"I doubt he knows much," a pale man detached himself from the shadows, his golden eyes slit like those of a snake, "Youngsters today are so…uneducated."

"Orochimaru is my partner and a formidable Shinobi," Aizen said, as though he wasn't introducing one of the worst Shinobi in history, "We'll make sure to take good care of her. After all, if she were harmed, then she wouldn't be able to use her powers now would she?"

Aizen blurred, too fast for Ichigo to follow, and the next thing he knew he was on his knees with a big hole in his gut. He coughed and choked on his own blood, falling face first to the floor. Distantly, he heard Orihime scream. He tried to get up, but couldn't force his body to move.

Behind the rubble of what had once been a column, the arrancar girl named Nell watched in horror. The two males dragged Orihime away before she could call on her little faries and left her alone with the dying Shinigami Substitute.

As fast as her little legs would carry her, she raced to her friend. His wounds were too severe for her to heal on her own. Some distant part of her knew that he would die if he didn't get any help. There was only one place that could help him now.

Summoning all the power and courage that she possessed, she focused on Seireitei. Dark wisps of energy floated around the two of them as she opened the Garganta and sent them both to the heart of Seireitei.

Pristine white walls stretched high above her, dwarfing her even as she fought to remain conscious.

There were Shinigami running towards her, one a large man with a pink haori over his uniform as well as a smaller woman with glasses.

"Help Ithigo…pleath…" she said before passing out. She didn't feel the man catch her, or hear the woman start chanting Kido spells over her fallen friend to heal what damage she could.

Captain Kyouraku looked down at the little arrancar girl who had brought Ichigo back to them and worried about those who had not returned. He sighed as Captain Unohana arrived and took Nanao's place. This was going to be very troublesome.


End file.
